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Justice of the peace suspended for dismissing 68 cases at once

A justice of the peace who dismissed 68 cases en masse when a prosecutor was 71 seconds late to a Toronto court has been handed a seven-day suspension without pay and ordered to apologize.

Justice Alfred (Budd) Johnston’s behaviour “struck at the heart of the administration of justice, and in the public confidence attached to it,” the Justices of the Peace Review Council ruled Tuesday.

Justice of the Peace Alfred "Budd" Johnston leaves a July 22 hearing into two complaints of misconduct against him, including the dismissal of 68 provincial offences en masse because the prosecutor was 71 seconds late. (TODD COYNE / TORONTO STAR FILE PHOTO)

“Warnings, reprimands, education or treatment are simply insufficient or inapplicable to remedy the misconduct,” the three-member review council said in its reasons for decision.

Johnston, who has served since 2003, first appeared before the review council in July to answer to two unrelated complaints about his behaviour on the bench.

The first was that Johnson’s “impatience,” “arrogant attitude” and “mocking sarcastic manner” in a November 2012 case prevented a man from getting a fair hearing on a traffic violation, according to the particulars of the complaint at the July hearing.

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On that matter, the council ruled Tuesday that Johnston “demonstrated an arrogant and sarcastic attitude” and “breached his duty to assist a self-represented defendant.”

Johnston was ordered to apologize to that defendant in writing.

The second complaint against Johnston originated 12 days later, when the justice’s dismissal of an entire afternoon’s court docket because a lawyer was about a minute late “constituted an abuse of power,” according to the particulars of the complaint.

On the matter, the review council ruled Johnston’s actions “fell short of the behaviour expected” and were “hasty, intemperate and lacked proportionality.”

In the opinion of the review panel, Johnston’s dismissal of the docket constituted an “abuse of the authority granted a justice of the peace.”

The hasty dismissal also cost taxpayers, as the city was forced to appeal four of the dismissed cases.

“An entire afternoon of court time was squandered,” the review council said. “Defendants and witnesses, both law enforcement and civilian, were inconvenienced.”

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The council ruled the dismissal “had far reaching consequences to the public purse,” but stopped short of putting a dollar figure to it.

“The financial cost, while not quantified, is obvious,” the council said.

Johnston admitted to misconduct in both cases. In each, he excused his behaviour, citing ongoing heart problems and the breakup of his marriage.

The review council accepted those mitigating factors among others, including that Johnston had no prior complaints against him, saying “we may have opted for a lengthier suspension” otherwise.

“There is some evidence before us that at the relevant time His Worship was suffering episodes of hypoglycemia related to a diabetic condition, as well as stress and depression due to matrimonial issues,” the council said.

Presenting lawyer Marie Henein initially asked the council to hand Johnson a 30-day suspension without pay, the most severe punishment available for a justice of the peace short of removal by the Attorney General.

Johnston’s lawyer, Peter Brauti, countered that a warning, an official reprimand, an apology and an order that his client continue to receive counselling was due punishment.

Johnston appeared before the review panel Tuesday but said nothing throughout the proceedings. His suspension of seven consecutive days without pay is to begin Sept. 8.

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